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Pronouncing Iowa Place Names: An Audio Guide
Presidential hopefuls need to clear all kinds of hurdles. Some are unique to politics, but one is familiar to every Iowan: getting our state's place-names right. While some of them (like Atlantic) are clear from the spelling, others trip "newbies" up. Louisa County? Not like my cousin's first name. Madrid? Not like the city in Spain. Nevada? Not like that state out west. You can’t take anything for granted.But you're not on your own - Iowa Public Radio has you covered. Below is our handy audio guide to pronouncing Iowa place names.

Iowa Place Names: U - Z

Iowa Public Radio | By Barney Sherman
Published September 14, 2017 at 9:00 AM CDT

-U-       -V-       -W-       -X-       -Y-       -Z-

Vining: VINE – ing

Viola: VAI-oh-luh (first syllable gets the accent and rhymes with "eye")

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Wapello: WAAH–puh-lo

Wapsipinicon: wahp-si-PIN-ih-con [final syllable is often a "schwa"]

Wever: WEE-ver (like "Weaver")

What Cheer: I have heard four variants from current residents in September, 2015: 1) whuh-cheer (no "t" sound, syllables connected); 2) What Cheer (WITH the "t" sound, as in the ordinary pronunciation); (3) Wah- cheer (first syllable almost like "wha-wha"), 4) WAT cheer

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Iowa Place Names
Barney Sherman
Barney Sherman was a Senior Music Producer and Classical Music Host